Just a stone's throw from each other, the fortunes of two pubs couldn't be more different

HOW ONE HAS CLOSED AND THE OTHER THRIVES IN DIFFICULT TIMES

- By LYNETTE PINCHESS

ONE'S a boarded-up eyesore, the other is absolutely blooming. These two pubs are a stone's throw from each other in Sneinton but their fortunes couldn't be more different.

Drinkers said the Wheatsheaf, in Sneinton Road, used to be a great, packed-out pub in its heyday but had been struggling for years and according to one, the building needs "a lot of work doing". It is believed the pub closed its doors a few weeks ago and more recently metal shutters have been installed on the doors and windows.

Tall weeds cover the unkempt beer garden at the front, with some growing between the gaps in the well-worn wooden tables.

Built in the mid-1960s, it was a typical community pub with a pool table and darts board. Members of the Nottingham branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) tried to have it registered as an Asset of Community Value in 2016 but the move, which would have given protection if the owners wanted redevelop or demolish the building, was rejected by Nottingham City Council.

Philip Murden, who lives in Carlton but used to live in Walker Road, Sneinton, just around the corner from the Wheatsheaf, said: "I used to be in here all the time. It used to be great years ago. It used to be really busy around 2000. I haven't been in for years.

"There used to be around 30 pubs round here at one time. People can't afford to go out and drink any more when it's £6 a pint. They're tied to the breweries and then there's the overheads. I don't think it will ever reopen as a pub. They could knock it down and put about 12 flats in."

William Robertson, 78, of Sneinton, said: "It used to be a marvellous family pub. It was my local at one time and it was fabulous. It changed hands and every time it changed it seemed to go downhill.

"It had the heart ripped out of it."